Friday, September 30, 2005

Advertisements/Selling and EQ Vs IQ

From Zig Ziglair’s newsletter:

People buy emotionally first and logically second!But sales people often (maybe most often) attempt to sell logically first and emotionally second (if at all). People won't buy in reverse order.You can explain why your product (or service, or your point, when talking to a colleague or family member) makes sense, or why your price is affordable, or your product is the best on the market, or your decision is best for everyone involved . . . but until the customer experiences the emotional desire to buy, you're not going to make your sale.Don't put the cart before the horse by trying to sell the logic first. Get people excited about what you're selling and they'll come up with the logic on their own! It's true. Think about a significant or unusual purchase that you recently made for yourself, your business, or your family. It might have been a new computer, a new car, a new set of golf clubs, an expensive vacation, or a special gift. Think about your buying process. Did you sit down and figure out how the purchase made sense before you got excited about making the purchase? Or was it the other way around?Yes, people get excited about what they want to buy, and then they figure out how to justify buying it. That's not always the best way to make a purchase because oftentimes we buy things we really don't need, or can't afford. But nonetheless, it's the way people buy.If you're selling something that people really do need, if you'll help them get excited first, you'll get more sales.Now that you understand why people buy, take a look at the five reasons why people won't buy from you:1. No need.2. No money.3. No hurry.4. No desire.5. No trust.It doesn't matter how good your product is, or how fairly it's priced. Where these reasons occur, a sale doesn't.

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Methinks:

Well, well – how true! That’s why we need advertising. Don’t we? Ironically, but not surprisingly, one of the fundamental concepts in advertising - AIDA – acknowledges the above-mentioned ‘logic’. AIDA stands for Attract, Interest, Desire, and Action. Thus, it proves beyond doubt that advertising has got to grab the prospect customer’s emotions first and only then (but not in all situations) present a logical case. But it would be unethical to emotionally trick people into buying just because you want to make money! That does bother me a bit. If you don’t see a need for the customer to buy it, in my world, it would be unethical to ‘trick’ the customer emotionally just so you can sell and make yourself wealthier. If you do it you would be a politician – a demagogue. Influencing the customer to ponder over the need and see if it would resolve a problem he is facing is, of course, all right. If it is a competitive pitch, you need to first differentiate yourself from your competitors and then use the differentiating factor in your emotional pitch. If certain segments of the market can relate to your pitch and thereby ‘fall’ for it, that’s absolutely fine. You deserve the attention because you are ‘different’ and are catering to particular emotions and requirements. I find myself convinced that the very concept of advertising is about emotional pitches rather than logical selling except in a few rare cases. Even if you were to point out some advertisements based on logic alone, I would ask you to go back to it and examine it closely for you will see a clear emotional terrain therein. The problem arises when the advertisements lie/manipulate rather than influence. Advertisements ought to be ethical emotional projects but they ought to speak on the basis of sound logical reasoning that will deliver to the customer what he needs! This is an interesting and controversial topic, I must say…can you think of any interesting advertisements that prove a point or two?

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